The present invention pertains generally to devices that opens bottle caps, and assist in opening tabs on beverage cans. More specifically, the present invention relates to bottle openers that are incorporated on keys.
For a bottle opener to be available when needed, a person must carry the device on a regular basis. Keys, such as automobile or building keys, are items that most people carry with them on a regular basis. Therefore, it would be advantageous to have a bottle opener that is connected to a key which is carried on a regular basis. Several approaches have been tried by the prior art to produce a key-bottle opener device. None have been entirely satisfactory.
One approach is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,314,905 to Sard. Sard discloses a bottle opener key with a head that has "an oval ring D" opening (Col. 1, line 24). The opening is shaped to permit placing one side of the oval ring D underneath the bottle cap and formed so as to engage and remove the bottle cap when pressure is exerted on the flat surface of the key's body. Sard also discloses a hook that is mounted on the exterior of the key's head. The problem with the approach disclosed in the Sard patent is that the ring-like opener in the flat surface of the head of the key cannot be easily incorporated into most currently used keys. Although keys come in a variety of shapes, most keys have a solid head with a small internal opening that allows attachment of a key chain or related device. Most keys would require substantial modification to form an opening large enough to engage a bottle cap. Furthermore, in many key shapes, the integrity of the key head may be compromised by the formation of a large internal opening. Hence, this approach is an impractical solution for incorporating an opener into the variety of keys that are currently used in the United States.
A similar approach to incorporating a bottle opener in a key is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,338,542 to Westerberg and in Norwegian Patent No. 29,736. Westerberg and the Norwegian patent disclose a bottle opener on a key. The key head possesses a substantially elliptical centrally located opening having a rib that engages and removes the bottle cap. This choice suffers from the same problems as the approach disclosed in the Sard patent. Namely, this opener cannot be easily incorporated into a variety of key shapes in existence.
Another approach to providing an opener with a key is disclosed in Australian Patent No. 24,245. This patent discloses a separate bottle cap remover for attachment to the exterior of a key head. A key ring manipulates a metal socket that is secured over the key head to engage and remove the bottle cap. The problem with this is that it strays from the relatively uncomplicated structure of the other openers by adding moving parts to the exterior of the key head. The addition of these parts increases the likelihood of breakdown and requires that metal sockets be on hand for each different key shape.
Thus, the prior attempts were unsuccessful in providing an efficient and economical solution for incorporating a bottle opener into the variety of key shapes in existence. There is, therefore, an unsatisfied long felt need for a bottle opener that can be easily and inexpensively incorporated into the majority of keys that are presently in use, including presently used car keys.